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As the temperature drops off once again, thoughts naturally turn to snow, slopes and skis. There are two schools of thought when it comes to booking skiing holidays: as early as possible or as late as possible. If you hold out for a deal, you’ll narrow your options, but may be able to go when the snow is best. Book early and you get the best deals on the widest choice of resorts and accommodation, especially if you’re going in a big group.

Skiing

If you take the plunge now and don’t want to have six months of anticipation spoilt by the mounting dread of organising your friends, family or colleagues, it makes sense to hire one of a number of boutique travel consultancies that specialise in tailoring your holiday to suit your every whim.

One of the best companies at this is split into two arms to deal with corporate hospitality and individual travel separately: Altitude for the former and Exosphere for the latter.

John Saunders, managing director of the two companies, said they act as a “travel PA” to clients. And if you are going to be properly looked after, then it should be in a proper resort. Val-d’Isère, Méribel and Chamonix are all very well, but for Brummell’s money, the Swiss do it best. Gstaad is a particular favourite.

The people watching, the nightlife and the food are almost as enjoyable as the skiing, which is spread between a handful of superb ski areas in the surrounding mountains.

By far the best place to base yourself in Gstaad is the Grand Hotel Park, which has all the facilities you’d expect of a five star hotel – excellent restaurants, superb spa and well-stocked ski shop – but also with far more space and a friendly atmosphere than you get in many ski resort hotels.

A particularly nice touch is the group of small chalets in the grounds that can be booked for private dining in the evening and the legendary parties the hotel throws.